Right to disconnect
Eligible employees have the right to refuse employer or third-party contact outside of working hours in some circumstances.
On this page:
- Right to disconnect
- Awards and agreements
- Tips for discussing out of hours contact
- Disputes
- Protections
- Tools and resources
- Related information
For small business employers and their employees, the right to disconnect provisions apply from 26 August 2025.
Right to disconnect
Employees of non-small business employers have the right to refuse to monitor, read or respond to contact (or attempted contact) outside their working hours, unless doing so is unreasonable. This includes contact (or attempted contact) from an employer or a third party.
Tip
Third party could include clients, suppliers, staff from other businesses, or members of the public.
Contact could include a range of communication channels used to engage with employees, such as calls, emails, texts, social media and messaging services.
Employers and employees are encouraged to discuss contact out of hours and set expectations that suit the workplace and the employee’s role. Find Tips for discussing out of hours contact.
Myth: An employer can’t contact an employee outside working hours
The right to disconnect rules don’t make it unlawful for an employer to contact an employee outside working hours. Instead, they give employees a right to refuse to monitor, read or respond to the contact, unless doing so is unreasonable.
It’s important to remember that the focus is on whether the employee’s refusal was unreasonable.
When working out whether an employee’s refusal is unreasonable, the following factors must be considered:
- the reason for the contact
- how the contact is made and how disruptive it is to the employee
- how much the employee is compensated or paid extra for:
- being available to perform work during the period they’re contacted, or
- working additional hours outside their ordinary hours of work
- the employee’s role in the business and level of responsibility
- the employee’s personal circumstances, including family or caring responsibilities.
Other matters may also be considered.
It will be unreasonable for an employee to refuse to read, monitor or respond if the contact or attempted contact is required by law.
Example: Employee’s personal circumstances make out of hours contact unreasonable
Selim is a consultant and is working on a major project for a client. Selim has 2 young children. He has flexible working arrangements and his working hours are 7.30 am to 4 pm so that he can pick up his children from daycare.
At 4.30 pm on a Tuesday afternoon, Selim’s supervisor, Ava, is copied into an urgent email to Selim from the client. Ava considers whether to contact Selim and ask him to action the client’s request. It’s urgent and Selim is very familiar with this aspect of the client’s work. However, Ava knows that Selim is on his way to pick up his children and it’s unlikely that he’ll be able to deal with the request.
Ava asks another consultant to help the client and will update Selim when he returns to work. Ava’s decision is appropriate given Selim’s family responsibilities and the fact that another employee could resolve the issue.
Example: Employee is compensated for reasonable out of hours contact
Elizabeth is an associate at a medium-sized architecture firm where she usually works 8.30 am to 5 pm.
Elizabeth has been asked to fill in for her manager who is taking 3 months leave. During this period, Elizabeth will need to lead the delivery of a project for a major client. She is receiving extra pay while acting in her manager’s role.
Her supervising partner, Devi, has let Elizabeth know that a reasonable amount of out of hours contact and work will be required during her acting period to deliver the project. She is also told that this has been factored into her higher pay.
Devi gives her a copy of the firm’s policy on out of hours contact and asks if she has any questions.
In her second week in the role, Elizabeth leaves work at 5 pm. Shortly after, Devi finds out that Elizabeth’s team needs to urgently provide the client with additional documents for the project by 10 am tomorrow. It will take around 3 hours to prepare the documents. Devi tries to call Elizabeth on her personal mobile and sends her a text message explaining the situation.
Elizabeth doesn’t answer the calls as she’s about to go to the gym and then run some errands. She reads the full message at 8 pm but decides that it’s too late to respond to Devi. Based on the circumstances, Elizabeth’s refusal to monitor or respond to Devi’s contact could be unreasonable.
Awards and agreements
Awards, enterprise agreements and other registered agreements can also include additional right to disconnect provisions.
Awards
The Fair Work Commission added a right to disconnect clause to all awards on 26 August 2024. Learn more at Variation of modern awards to include a right to disconnect.
An employee’s right to disconnect applies from:
- 26 August 2024 for non-small business employers and their employees
- 26 August 2025 for small business employers and their employees.
All awards include a right to disconnect clause.
An employer must not stop an employee from using their right to disconnect.
Awards may clarify how the right to disconnect works with emergency roster changes, stand-by and call back clauses in the awards.
Myth: An employee who is on call or working overtime doesn’t need to answer calls as they have a right to disconnect
Employees can be required to monitor, answer or respond to calls when working overtime or when on call. Check the rules that apply to your situation.
In some situations, an employee may be required to monitor, read or respond to contact (or attempted contact) from the employer outside their working hours. For example, when an employee is paid an on-call allowance and the contact is to give notice of or recall the employee to work.
Find tailored information in your award by using our industry filter below:
Check your award for right to disconnect rules that apply to your industry or occupation.
Agreements
If you're covered by an enterprise or other registered agreement, check the terms of your agreement for information about the right to disconnect. To find an enterprise agreement, go to the Fair Work Commission’s website.
Tips for discussing out of hours contact
Regular and open communication helps maintain a harmonious working environment. It can also prevent workplace problems from happening. Both employees and employers are responsible for open and effective communication at and about work. Learn more about good workplace communication practices.
Employers and employees are encouraged to discuss out of hours contact and set expectations that suit the workplace and the employee’s role. Where possible, there are benefits to having these conversations before out of hours contact happens.
A discussion about out of hours contact could include:
When the employee may be expected to monitor, read or respond to contact
It’s important employees know when they can disconnect from work and when they may be expected to monitor, read or respond to contact.
For example, a specialist technical engineer is told that while out of hours contact isn’t common, they may be contacted out of hours in response to a critical technical outage. They don’t need to monitor emails, but will be expected to answer or return a phone call about a serious outage.
Pay and conditions that may relate to out of hours contact
It’s important to check the relevant award, enterprise agreement or employment contract for entitlements that may apply. Learn more about Pay and wages and Employment conditions.
Preferred out of hours contact channels
For example, if there’s a serious issue, an employee may prefer to be called on their personal phone so that they don’t have to monitor a work phone or email account.
Who needs to be aware of out of hours contact arrangements
For example, managers and supervisors may formalise arrangements for out of hours contact and communicate those arrangements with senior leaders. For external clients, managers and supervisors may consider whether and how they should discuss expectations about communication with their clients.
When arrangements should be reviewed
For example, the arrangement could be reviewed on a regular basis or when there’s a change in an employee’s hours (such as a change to hours or work due to a flexible work arrangement).
Employers should also consider:
What training is needed to help support managers, supervisors and employees
For example, managers can develop their skills by:
- completing our Difficult conversations in the workplace manager online course.
- reading our Consultation and cooperation in the workplace guide.
Employees can develop their skills by completing our Difficult conversations in the workplace employee course.
What internal policies, procedures and documents may need to be reviewed and updated
For example, updates to position descriptions to reflect expectations for out of hours contact.
How the arrangement may be recorded
For example, recording the arrangement in writing.
Myth: An employee can’t use their right to disconnect if their contract includes reasonable additional hours
An employee has a right to disconnect and refuse contact outside their working hours unless doing so is unreasonable. Whether a refusal is reasonable will depend on the circumstances of the employee and the refusal, which must consider the factors listed under the Right to disconnect section.
Tip: Guidance on the right to disconnect
The Australian Public Service Commission has published guidance on the right to disconnect in the public service sector.
The Fair Work Commission has published a video on understanding the new right to disconnect as well as a Right to disconnect fact sheet. They’re also required to make guidelines about the operation of the right to disconnect. These are not yet available.
Disputes
Disputes about an employee’s right to disconnect should first be discussed at the workplace level to try to resolve the dispute.
If that isn’t successful, employees or employers can go to the Fair Work Commission (the Commission) to deal with the dispute. The Commission can make orders or deal with the dispute in other ways. This includes making orders to stop an employee from refusing contact or to stop an employer from taking certain actions.
You can read more at the Commission’s Right to disconnect disputes page.
Tip: We’re different from the Fair Work Commission
A reminder that the Commission is the national workplace relations tribunal and registered organisations regulator.
We’re the Fair Work Ombudsman. Our role is to give you advice and assistance on workplace laws.
Learn more about the difference between us (the Fair Work Ombudsman) and the Fair Work Commission.
Protections
The right to disconnect is a workplace right under general protection laws. These laws are protected rights employees have under the Fair Work Act.
Sources reference: Fair Work Act 2009 s.333M–333W, s.340
